CATTARAUGUS COUNTY IDA
Legislation may bring drop in development projects
LITTLE VALLEY — Board members of the Cattaraugus County Industrial Development Agency were told Tuesday to expect changes in the organization and a drop in the level of business projects seeking industrial development bonds if new reform legislation is adopted by the State legislature this summer.
“It’s highly unlikely you will see the level of business at the Industrial Development Agency that you have seen in the past,” said IDA attorney George Cregg.
He and IDA Director Corey Wiktor told board members that hope is dimming to revive civic facility revenue bond legislation that expired at the end of 2007 and in the past provided the catalyst for about $2.3 billion in projects locally. And, they said, the new state budget’s $5 million IDA revenue line is expected to add 20 percent to the agency’s bond issuance charge. Next March, this will most likely require the county IDA to pay the state about $40,000 to $50,000. The IDA’s 2009 budget is $2.58 million.
Also, the agency will face more problems in the event of passage of reform legislation sponsored by Assemblyman Sam Hoyt and Sen. Antoine Thompson, both D-Buffalo. Besides limiting IDAs to one per county, it would tie the renewal of the Civic Facility Revenue Bond revival—used often here to support college, hospital and other nonprofit community-benefit projects — to higher prevailing wages for workers in public construction.
The 30-page reform bill is supported by the AFL-CIO and Local 1199 of the Service Employees International Union — labor lobbying groups that Cregg said are more powerful than the IDA lobby. He added that he fears projects will choose Pennsylvania or other states for development if the IDA can help reduce costs by only 10 percent while the new wage requirements add 25 percent or 30 percent.
“This is our region and it’s our quality of life,” said Wiktor about the potential for the IDA’s loss of power and a new vulnerability to lawsuits. He said he would continue working with other IDAs and related organizations regionally to push for compromises in the Hoyt bill.
In other matters, the Board:
• Took steps to expand its March environmental review of the Win- Sum Ski Corp.’s $3.3 million improvements project to include a small area surrounding the Champagne Mountain Top Warming Hut, which would provide about $10,000 in benefits for the Town of Great Valley. The board voted 6-0 to approve a state environmental quality review resolution and a resolution to assist Win-Sum in the project, with board Chairman Thomas Buffamante abstaining because Win-Sum is a client of his firm, Buffamante Whipple Buttafaro.
• Voted to approve modifications to Gernatt Asphalt Products’ $6,120,000 bond project issued in 1998, to reflect a change in the location of equipment on Norton Road in Great Valley, required for a bank loan.
• Learned that the Noble Freedom and Farmersville Wind Energy project has been placed on hold, with only two options left to keep it viable: stimulus aid for renewable energy or the sale of the project to another entity. However, Horizon’s potential projects in Machias, Yorkshire and Ashford, and the Everpower project in Chipmonk in the Town of Allegany are still viable, officials said.
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